


Brother

by TorasHamster



Category: Midnight Poppy Land (Webcomic)
Genre: Brothers, Child Abuse, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-12 23:55:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28518981
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TorasHamster/pseuds/TorasHamster
Summary: Tora and Quincey bond as they are raised together in the Balthuman household.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 13





	Brother

**Author's Note:**

> First fanfic, not beta read. May or may not turn into a series of one-shots. Figured I should stop lurking and contribute now that we're all on hiatus, haha! If you're on the fence about joining Lilydusk's Patreon, DO IT. Link here: https://patreon.com/lilydusk
> 
> Did my best to comply with Lilydusk's fanfiction guidelines, but please contact me privately if you believe I have violated them:
> 
> Fanwork creator is free to create any kinds of fan creations and share them on any public or private platform as long as the creator acknowledges that:  
> 1\. No profit is to be made from fan creation.  
> 2\. Any resemblance that the original piece bears to fan creation is coincidental and unintentional,  
> 3\. Fan creation is to be a transformative work, derived from a single idea, a single sketch, or a small percentage of the original piece.
> 
> My song recommendation is Ghosts That We Knew by Mumford & Sons.

It was a warm summer night, but that didn’t mean much after sunset, lying on cold concrete in a t-shirt and shorts. The crickets were loud enough that Tora didn’t hear the distant crunch of shoes on the grass, not that he had the presence of mind to be paying attention. He did, however, hear his forcefully whispered name called out from the blackness beyond the metal grate. He sat up stiffly, squinting his eyes against the dark to make out a fuzzy shape peering around the corner of the garden wall.

“Quincey?” The form rounded the edge of the brick, the moonlight dimly illuminating the thin smile that adorned the face of the young master. He was wearing a navy-blue pajama set, green flip-flops, and a red raincoat. A bolt of fear sent Tora’s heart crawling up his throat. Tora had never seen Mr. Balthuman hit Quincey, because Quincey wasn’t disobedient like he was, but sneaking out to see Tora when he was being punished was definitely breaking the rules. Quincey’s footsteps grew faster as he approached the concrete structure, glancing behind him before shoving his hand between the bars and against Tora’s chest.

“I brought you some granola bars; I heard Dad say you didn’t get dinner.” The plastic crinkled in Tora’s hands as he took it from Quincey, the sound loud in his hears after the hours of relative quiet. He tore the wrapper open without ceremony, taking two greedy bites of the chocolate-chip studded bar. Not stopping to taste the meager snack, Tora hurriedly chewed, swallowing down the only sustenance he’d been offered since his imprisonment began the night before. His hunger momentarily forgotten, Tora turned to Quincey, imbuing his whisper with the urgency he felt for his companion.

“Quincey, ya gotta go back in. You’re gonna get in trouble.”

“Don’t worry, Tora, I figured it out.” Quincey winked, pulling another granola bar from his jacket pocket and handing it to Tora, holding out his hand for the first’s packaging.

“Martin is gone, and Mom and Dad went to bed. I got out the basement window; That one doesn’t make a beeping noise, maybe ‘cause it’s so small. I don’t think they’ll find out.” Relaxing slightly, Tora passed Quincey his wrapper. If Mr. Balthuman wouldn’t know that Quincey came outside, he guessed it was okay. He took a few more bites, chewing more slowly this time. Quincey settled criss-cross-applesauce next to the bars of the enclosure, leaning in to see Tora’s face better as they sat together in the sparse light. The young heir looked away after a few moments, fiddling with the hood strings of his rain jacket. Though he sensed Quincey’s sudden discomfort, Tora didn’t have anything to say, and his mouth was busy. After Tora started his second granola bar, Quincey broke the quiet of the night with a murmured question.

“Why did you hit him? You know fighting makes Dad mad.” Quincey met Tora’s eyes again expectantly, waiting quietly for his answer. Tora’s eyes flashed with anger for a moment before balling up the second wrapper in his small fist. Tatsuo was a big kid, a year ahead of himself and Quincey; He usually only pushed around the kids in his own grade but made exceptions when he was feeling particularly irritable. Swallowing the last of his food, Tora cleared his throat before staring intently at the divot in the floor next to his shoes.

“He pushed Chloe off the swings, even though she was there first. He was being mean.” Quincey nodded, having witnessed plenty of Tatsuo’s encounters himself. Tora held out the second wrapper to Quincey before continuing quietly.

“I went to help her, and he said I had weird eyes and it was dumb to help girls, so I hit him.” Furrowing his eyebrows, Quincey pondered Tora’s response. It’s true that Tatsuo was being mean and probably deserved the consequences of his actions, but that didn’t mean that Tora could just start fights with everyone. He stared at Tora’s face, trying to catch his eye despite the boy’s obstinate gaze at the ground. Quincey missed Tora when he was put outside, and he knew Tora was afraid of being in the cage at night.

“That’s dumb. I think your eyes are cool.” Tora reddened slightly in the shadows. Most of their classmates disagreed, their eyes flitting away when he caught them staring, which was often. He was taller and bigger than any other child in their grade, and most of those in the year above. Quincey straightened after a moment, spinning quickly to fully face Tora.

“What if you told the recess teacher next time? Then you won’t get in trouble and you can come to the beach with us.” Tora finally lifted his amber eyes to meet the brilliant seafoam green of Quincey’s. Miss Kajikawa and Mr. Kemp didn’t like Tora too much; he wasn’t especially good at his schoolwork, and his attitude frequently earned him a time out in the reading nook. All the teachers liked Quincey because he was smart and friendly and never needed any help. Unsure of how to explain his distrust to Quincey, Tora sighed heavily and rested his chin on one of his knees.

“Maybe.” Mr. Balthuman told Tora not to bother Quincey with his problems, that Quincey had enough to think about with all his schoolwork and extra lessons. He would try not to fight though, because Quincey wanted him to, and because he really did want to go to the beach. Tora gazed up at the star-studded sky above the estate; It was getting late, and he was having trouble keeping his eyes open, having slept very little the night before. He was pretty sure he was finished thinking about what he had done, but the master of the house wouldn’t be awake to let him out until the sun rose again.

“You should go back in… Thanks for the granola bars.” Grinning at Tora’s shy gratitude, Quincey rose to his feet, tugging the zip on his jacket up to his neck. Tora’s manners were abominable, but he made an effort for Quincey. The slight blond had been wary of the dark, towering boy when his father had first brought Tora home a year ago, but they were friends now. He took a few steps towards the garden wall before turning back to Tora to watch him settle himself on the rough concrete; It looked far less comfortable than his bed. Quincey frowned, wishing he could take Tora back inside, but he knew that his father wouldn’t let Tora out, even if he asked nicely. Hopefully, the granola bars had made him feel a bit better.

“Goodnight, Tora.” Quincey slipped quietly around the brick barrier, careful to scan the windows for light before darting to the smaller one a few inches above the grass. Tora would be let out for breakfast, and the sooner Quincey went to bed, the sooner he would see his brother again.


End file.
